Greenwich Palace: London's Lost Palace by Matthew Wainwright

Take a walk down by the River Thames in Greenwich, London, and you’ll see a beautiful set of white buildings backed by the lush green hill of Greenwich Park. These buildings are the Old Royal Naval College, now part of the University of Greenwich, and they sit on the site of what was one of London’s most beautiful palaces: the Palace of Placentia, or Greenwich Palace.

First built in 1443 (that’s 580 years ago!) by the Duke of Gloucester, the palace was called Bella Court. It was a ‘pleasaunce’ (or ‘pleasance’), which means it was a pleasure palace where lords and ladies would go on holiday, perhaps to relax by the river.

In those days Greenwich was not a part of London like it is now. London at that time was fairly small, just the part that we would call Central London. Greenwich was a small village some miles downriver, and the palace was the main thing about it.

Just imagine sailing down the Thames on a glorious summer’s day, passing green fields and beds of reeds, and rounding a bend to see a shining palace rising by the water’s edge. Perhaps you would be able to hear music drifting over to you on a gentle breeze, and the sounds of laughter and singing as young nobles enjoyed themselves in the palace and grounds.

Greenwich Palace (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Greenwich Palace is most famously associated with the Tudor kings and queens of the 1500s. Henry VIII was born there in 1491, and shortly afterwards it was rebuilt and extended by his father, Henry VII.

When Henry VIII became king he spent a lot of time at Greenwich Palace. Two of his children were born there – Mary and Elizabeth – and it was where he married Anne of Cleeves, his fourth wife. Henry often travelled between his palaces, from Hampton Court to Eltham Palace, but he always returned to Greenwich.

King Henry VIII (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

If you visit Greenwich Park you can look for a fallen tree called Queen Elizabeth’s Oak, which is where Queen Elizabeth I was supposed to have played as a child!

Sadly the palace fell into disrepair during the English Civil War in the 1600s. It was used as a prisoner of war camp, and even as a biscuit factory at one point! In 1660 Charles II decided to rebuild it, but the new palace was never finished. In 1694 construction began on a new Greenwich Hospital: the buildings that stand there today.

From the records we have, and a few paintings and engravings, we know that Greenwich Palace was a beautiful place. Historians have pieced together what the palace probably looked like, and you can watch a virtual guided tour through the palace here: Greenwich Palace: A Virtual Tour of Tudor London

Sadly the palace is now lost forever, but you can still see some remains, if you know where to look!

If you’re ever in London, see if you can take a walk down by the river in front of the Old Royal Naval College. Go down on to the shore of the Thames at low tide and stand right in front of the college. You should be able to see some very old pieces of wood sticking up from the mud and sand in a couple of straight lines: these are the remains of the original Tudor jetty, where boats would tie up to allow Tudor lords and ladies to disembark and enter the palace.

Remains of the jetty at Greenwich Palace (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

There are also countless tiny artefacts to be found if you search hard enough on the shore of the river: leftovers from hundreds of years of history. You can find chicken and lamb bones, bits of pottery, and even oyster shells, which the kitchen staff would have thrown into the river to dispose of them. It’s amazing to think that we can be that close to a long-lost Tudor palace ...

Writing Challenge

Your writing challenge this week has a few parts:

1. Think of a ruined palace, or another ruined building that you know. It could be near your home or school, or anywhere in the country.
2. Find pictures of what the place looks like now. Maybe it’s a ruin - maybe it isn’t even there, like Greenwich Palace! You can do this online with the help of a teacher or other grown-up.
3. Find pictures of what the place may have looked like in the past, when it was newly-built and people were using it. These might be paintings from the time, or what we call ‘artist’s impressions’: pictures that people have drawn imagining what it was like.
4. Write a story. In the story, your main character (or yourself) is walking around the place in the present day. Try to describe what they see and hear and feel. Then your character finds something very old, from the past - maybe a bone, or an old key, or a piece of pottery - and when they touch it they are taken back in time to when the place was new! Describe what they see and hear and feel, and think about how different it might be.

You can add as much as you like to your story - perhaps your character has adventures! Perhaps they meet a famous historical character.

This is what it’s like to be a real Time Tunnelling author. I hope you enjoy it, and good luck!

 

Matthew Wainwright is an author of historical fiction for children and teenagers.

Out of the Smoke is available at all good bookshops and online.

You can find out more about Matthew and his books on his website.